Pallet



March 13, 1951 R, VRABCAK 2,544,743

PALLET Filed 0G13. 8, 1946 3 Sheets-Sheet l R crd. o @CI/:ZIEK

March 13, 1951 R, VRABCAK 2,544,743

PALLET Filed oct. 8, 194e 5 sheets-sheet 2 JNVENTOR.

R. VRABCAK March 13, 1951 PALLET 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed OCb. 8, 1946 k y INVENTOR. RW@ wml@ Patented Mar. 13, 1951 UNITED sTATEs PATENT OFFICE PALLET Richard vrabcak, Flushing, N. Y.

Application October 8, 1946, Serial No. 701,860

e claims. (o1. 248-4120) (Granted under the act of March 3, 1883, as

amended April 3G, 1928; 370 0. G. 757) 'This invention relates to a pallet construe tion, and more particularly, to a pallet embodying a one-piece lightweight construction.

An .object of this invention is to provide a pallet of unitary lightweight construction having a platform with channels formed therein and in which the channels serve as supporting legs and also as reinforcing ribs for the platform.

' Another object of this invention is to provide a pallet construction molded or pressed from a single sheet and provided with transverse chan- -nels parallel to each other and parallel to an edge of the sheet, and wherein the channels form supporting legs and also reinforcing members to prevent the pallet from flexing.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a pallet of one-piece construction provided with a platform having spaced channels, and in vwhich the spaces between the channels under the platform are designed to receive the fork of a fork-lift truck, and in which transverse cutvouts are provided in the channels to permit insertion of the fork of a fork-lift truck transversely fof the. channels so that the pallet may be lifted .from ,any side.

Still another object of the invention is to provide. a pallet of unitary construction formed from a sheet having channels alternately pressed un'- 'wardly and downwardly in a sheet, and in which ,the downwardly pressed channels form support- -ing legs for the pallet, and in which the upwardly pressed channels form the platform of the pallet. .'.It'is als'oan object of this invention to provide `a 'reversible one-piece pallet construction having formed therein alternately, upwardly and downwardly extending channels and in which the channels are of the same dimension and shape -the accompanying drawings forming a part of thisspecication and in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the pallet construction of this invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of another embodiment of this invention wherein transverse cutouts are provided through the channels;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on line 4-4 of Fig. s;

Fig. 5 is a perspective View of still another embodiment wherein the platform slopes toward the center;H

l Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken on line 6 6 of Fig. 5;

Fig. '7 is a perspective view of still a further embodiment showing a reversible pallet construction;

Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken on line 8-8 of Fig. 7;

Fig. 9 is a perspective view of still another embodiment showing a pallet construction combined with a superstructure; and

Fig. 10 is a sectional view of the embodiment of Fig. 9 showing the legs ofthe superstructure in position.

Referring to Fig. 1 of the drawings, I represents the pallet construction in general constituting a unitary platform, molded or pressed from a single sheet of plastic, metal, or other suitable material, such as, pressed paper or combinations of plastic, laminated with pressed paper. As shown in Fig. 1, the pallet is provided with downwardly extending channels 2 parallel to and coextensive with the opposite sides 3 and 4 of the pallet. Four channels are shown at spaced intervals, but it is within the scope of this invention to utilize a lesser or greater number of channels.

The portions 5 intermediate the channels constitute a load bearing platform upon which articles may be placed for transportation, loading or storage purposes. Each channel is provided with the downwardly extending sides and with the flat bottom 'l.`

As shown, the flat bottoms 1 ofr the several channels are positioned in the same horizontal plane so that these bottoms will rest on the ground or'floor or on other flat objects to support the pallet and articles thereon. Theside portions 6 of the channels transmit the load from the platform 5 to the ground or floor, and thus serve as legs for the platform 5. At the same time, the side portions 6 of the channels serve as corrugated stiifening members to prevent flexing of the platform 5 under great loads. `Along the side edges 3 and 4, there are preferably pro- .vided .blocks or other. suitable. means. such as hooks, secured to the under side of the side edges 3 and 4 to provide a means for attaching a hoist sling to the pallet to permit the pallet to be lifted by means of a hoist. Also, if desired, the side portions 6 of the channels may be provided with slots 9, as shown in Fig. 1, to receive straps, looped through the slots 9, transversely of the channels, to permit strapping of articles supported on the pallet. It is also apparent that fastening straps may pass through the spaces 2 between and parallel to the channels 2, so that strapping in both directions will be feasible. The spaces 2' between the channels 2 are designed' to receive the fork of a fork-lift. truclr` so. that the pallet may be readily moved, with a load thereon, from one place to another.

The embodiment of Fig. 3 is similar to that of Fig. 1, and the parts Il to i3, inclusive, perform the same function as the parts I to 8, inclusive, in the embodiment of Fig. l. rThe embodiment of Fig. 3 is further provided withV the cut-outs I9 through the sides i6 and bottoms Il of the channels I2: These cut-outs are shown in alignment in Fig. 3 and as forming two open passageways beneath the platform i and transversely of the channels 1.2.Thus with this construction, it is possible to insert the fork of a fork-lift truck into the openings I9 and transversely of the channels l2. Thus, this embodiment permits the pallet to be handled by a fork-lift truck from any'side, thus, further increasing the adaptability of the pallet.

In the embodiment of Fig. 5, a .similar pallet construction is shown, the parts 2! to 28, inclusive, performing the same functions as the parts l to 8, inclusive, in the embodiment of Fig. 1. Fig; 5, however, presents a different feature in that the. platform is designed to slope downwardly ltowards the center 2910i the platform, as clearly shownin Fig. 6. This pitch or slope elect is especially designed to accommodate bagged goods and will tend to urge such goods towards the center of the pallet and prevent accidental falling from the pallet.

The embodiment of Fig. 7 is similar to the vcan be used for the platform. The side. portions -36 of the channels are arranged to diverge downl waldl-y inthe channels 32 and to diverge upwardly in channels 33. This structure enables the plat,-

-form area 35, 35 to be greater than the area presented by the channels in the. plane of the platform. The slots 9V and projections 8A of the embodiment of Fig. l may be applied to the em.- bodiment of Fig. 2, il desired.

The embodiment of Fig, 9 showsV a combination ofi a pallet, similar to the pallets of. Figs.. 1, 3,` and 5, combined with a. superstructure designed to support covering material,l such as canvas, to protect the karticles on the pallet when used outdoors during inclement weather. rhis pallet is similarly provided with the channels 42 formed or pressed from a sheet 4l and formsV the platform 45. The channels 42 preferably have --their sidesv 46 convergingV downwardly, as shown in Figs. 9 and 10, and form the spaces 42' between the channels to receive the fork of a forklift truck. The walls of the channels may be provided with cut-outs 42 for the reception of the fork of a fork-lift truck, similar to the form of the invention shown in Figure 3, if desired. The outermost pair of channels 42, adjacent the edges 43 and 44, are provided with the transverse plates 5D, 5l, 52, and 53 positioned, as shown in Fig. 9, within and adjacent the ends of the outermost channels 42. As shown, these plates are used in pairs and in conjunction with the sides 46 of the channels to form the pockets 49 for a purpose. to be described hereinafter. The superstructure comprises the horizontal members 54 forming a rectangular construction, and the vertical legs 55. The several parts of the superstructure are preferably hinged together to permit folding for compactness when not in use. The legs 55, have xed to their lower ends the blocks 56 which are of such shape and dimensions as to nt into the pockets 49 of the pallet, as fully shown i'n Fig'. l0. The blocks 5S may be made of wood, plastic, or other suitable material. The superstructure may be covered with canvas or other suitable material (not shown) to protect articles stored on the pallet from the weather.

In all of the embodiments described', the platform and channel surfaces may be perforated, if desired, to reduce the Weight of the Dalle-t, depending upon the structural strength of' thel malterial used in the construction, and also depending on the loads to be carried. Also, if desired, material forming corner or edge guards may be fixed` to the outer edges of the pallet to prevent wearing due to friction from the strapping, orl injury due to impacts against the edges. Also, reinforcing rods or bars may be included in the platform or in the sides of the channels, where necessary to increase the structural strength of the pallet.

It is apparent that this invention provides'several embodiments of a pallet of lightweight onepiece construction which may be readily transported whether the pallets' are loaded or empty. It is further apparent that the pallets maybe pressed or molded from a single sheet, and ma-y be manufactured at a minimum cost underl mass production methods, and when pallets ofthe same type are used, especially with regard to the pallets oi Figs. 1, 3, 5, and 9, the channels of one pallet may be nested into the channels of another pallet. when empty, to conserve storage space in warehouses, shipping trucks, and railroadA cars. In the pallets of this invention, it is urther to be noted that there are no projecting nails, splinters, and the like to tear or cut articles supportedY on the pallet.

While the inventionhas been described inmore .or less detail, it is not to be limited thereby, as

changes may be made in they form, arrangement and construction of parts, and equivalents, may be substituted, without. departing from the spirit vand scope of the invention as claimed, the. forms a. platform and a covering superstructure therefor, said platform being integrally formed with transversely extending parallel channels for supporting said platform, the outermost pair of channels tapering downwardly and being provided at each end with a pocket having the same depth and Width as that of the channel, said superstructure including supporting legs, and said legs having fixed at their lower ends tapered blocks for reception in said pockets.

3. In a pallet of sheet material, the combination of a platform, parallel channels formed in said platform parallel to an edge thereof, said channels being disposed at and intermediate the platform edges, certain of said channels provided with pockets, the walls of said channels formed with cut-outs extending through the vertical length thereof for the reception of the fork of a fork-lift truck.

' RICHARD VRABCAK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTSl Number Name Date 1,597,820 Proctor et al. Aug. 3l, 1926 1,605,901 ONeil Nov. 2, 1926 1,922,560 Sullivan Aug. 15, 1933 2,235,647 Shanahan Mar. 18, 1941 2,412,184 Ulinski Dec. 3, 1946 2,447,542 Seward Aug. 24, 1948 2,479,728 Darling Aug. 23, 1949 2,495,711 Fletchell Jan. 31, 1950 2,519,839 Leisen Aug. 22, 1950 

